LibriVox recording of Tartuffe, by Molière. Translated by Curtis Hidden Page.

Jean-Baptiste Poquelin, known by his stage name Molière, was a French playwright and actor who is considered to be one of the greatest masters of comedy in Western literature. Among Molière's best-known works is Tartuffe or The Hypocrite, written in 1664. Though Tartuffe was received well by the public and even by Louis XIV, its popularity was lessened when the Archbishop of Paris issued an edict threatening excommunication for anyone who watched, performed in, or read the play.

Tartuffe, a pious fraud who pretends to speak with divine authority, has insinuated himself into the household of Orgon. When Orgon announces that his daughter Mariane is to marry Tartuffe instead of her fiance Valère, the rest of the family realizes the extent of Tartuffe's influence over Orgon. Tartuffe tries to seduce Orgon's wife Elmire, who traps him into revealing to Orgon his intentions toward her. Orgon throws Tartuffe out of the house, Tartuffe returns with an order of eviction for the family, and at the final moment the tables are turned and the play ends happily. (Summary by Wikipedia and Laurie Anne Walden)

Cast:

Madame Pernelle - April Gonzales
Orgon - Adam
Elmire - Valerie Tan
Damis - Uday Sagar
Mariane - Elizabeth Klett
Cleante - sid
Tartuffe - ToddHW
Dorine - Amanda Friday
Valère - Nathanial W.C. Higgins
M. Loyal - David Lawrence
Police officer - Grace
Stage directions - Laurie Anne Walden

Audio edited by David Lawrence

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This audio is part of the collection: The LibriVox Free Audiobook Collection
It also belongs to collections: Audio Books & Poetry; Community Audio

Artist/Composer: Molière
Date: 2012-07-03
Source: Librivox recording of a public-domain text
Keywords: Comedy; play; satire; theater; literature; audiobook; Librivox

Creative Commons license: Public Domain Mark 1.0

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